Team Injury Update

Much thanks to the Denver Broncos PR for the following:

Head Coach Josh McDaniels addressed several injuries on Thursday.

On Brandon Stokley: “He’s got a minor deal with the shoulder and just kind of fell on the ground but hopefully he’ll be back out there.”

On Ryan Harris:“(He’s) good. We’re hopeful – and I don’t want to say an exact day or date – but hopefully (we will) see him out there soon. He’s doing well and we’re excited about getting him back out and I know he is too.”
On Demaryius Thomas, Eric Decker and Ryan Harris all recovering from foot injuries: “At this point we’re going to err on the side of being real careful and not put them in a situation where (it’s) the last day of minicamp on June 13th and all of a sudden we have a foot injury. If there’s a guy who is borderline ready and not ready, we’re not going to push it. Really, we’ve told all the players August is the time we want you to be ready to go. If they are ready I think we’ll be excited to see them out there. They’re all taking a bunch of mental reps. They’re all in the film session and they’re all seeing the things were doing and getting all the information but hopefully everybody will be ready by August.”

Passing Camp concludes till June 2nd

Thursday, the Denver Broncos held their final practice of the month. The heat was up, 80-degrees up.

Second-year QB Tom Brandstater could also be on the "Hot Seat" as Tim Tebow has already passed him on the depth chart. Tebow was the #3 QB in practice, going 2-for-5 with an interception. Although the media has made a big to-do of a 1st Round Draft Pick passing a potential practice squad Quarterback, McDaniels downplayed the 'promotion.'

“We’ve been flopping them all,” he said. “The only thing consistent is that Kyle is in the first huddle.”

Kyle Orton got more reps with the first team than all the other QB's combined, going 15-of-25 with two interceptions. The first pass of 7-on-7 (thrown by Orton) was picked off by linebacker D.J. Williams, who returned it for a score. New-comer Brady Quinn seemed to have had a better session, throwing a touchdown to Tight End Dan Graham on his first attempt. Tom Brandstater only threw one pass, which fell incomplete.

Wide receiver Brandon Stokley was held out of Thursday's passing camp practice because of a shoulder injury. Rookies Demayrius Thomas and Eric Decker are also recovering from foot injuries, and have not yet participated in practice. In their absence, the other WR's stepped up, particularly Brandon Lloyd. In 7-on-7 drills, Lloyd scored three times, while hauling in some nice one-handed grabs. Holdovers from 2009, Eddie Royal and Jabar Gaffney, had solid practices as well.The team is done for the weekend, but will be back on June 2-4, and June 7-9. We'll continue to bring you coverage. Check out photos from practice here, and video highlights of today's practice here.

Broncos sign 7th round rookie Jammie Kirlew

On Tuesday, the Broncos announced the signing of their second pick of the seventh round, defensive end/linebacker Jammie Kirlew. The deal, a four year contract worth $1.84 million dollars with a $50.000 dollar signing bonus, is similar to the deal Syd'Quan Thompson received when he signed his contract last Friday.

Kirlew played in 48 games for Indiana, starting 41. Over his four years, he collected 220 tackles, 9 forces fumbles and 6 fumble recoveries. He also had 23 sacks and 52.5 tackles for loss.

From the start of the draft, the Broncos had their eye on Kirlew. He told Gray Caldwell of DenverBroncos.com:

“I was getting a couple of calls through the draft from them,” the linebacker said. “They were telling me that no matter what they were trying to get me up there. They found a way to get me up there and I’m excited."

When the Broncos realized Kirlew was still on the board after trading back into the seventh round, they decided to grab him with their final pick. Kirlew posses a lot of the qualities that head coach Josh McDaniels looks for in a player: versatile, hardworking and smart. Kirlew left Indiana with two degrees, in public finance and management. Said Kirlew:

“The smarter player I become, I think definitely my instincts are going to be faster,” Kirlew said. “I’m going to be able to make more plays and be quicker on the field, which is going to be important for me to be able to be productive in the NFL.”

With a lot of depth at the linebacker position, Kirlew will have to work hard to claim a roster spot once the final cuts come around at the end of August. But if anyone is up for the job, it will be Jammie Kirlew.

Passing Camp continues, in windy conditions

After getting a long weekend break from "Voluntary" Passing Camp camp, the Broncos returned to Dove Valley today to continue where they left off.

Practice was anything but uneventful; Denver experienced gusts of wind from 45 to 70 miles per hour, having an effect on practice. A tree fell over during practice, while passes were often way overthrown. Kyle Orton was 2-7 in 7-on-7, Quinn was 2-5 with an interception, Tom Brandstater's only pass was intercepted, and Tebow's only pass attempt was completed.

The wind did aid the punters though. From the back of their own end zone they kicked them as far as 100 yards. Punters Britton Colquitt and A.J. Trapasso would have been setting records if it were in a game. Kicker Matt Prater also had some fun, kicking several of his attempts through the uprights and all the way over the top of the Dove Valley building.

“Growing up in Florida, with the hurricanes and all that stuff, I’ve gone out and kicked before storms come, and it wasn’t anything like this. This was constant,” said kicker Matt Prater, whose kicks in the crosswind occasionally curved at angles approaching 60 degrees. "Kicking that way was awful … Hopefully we don’t have a game like this, but if we do, I have experience.”

It's May, and Depth Charts don't exist, but the Broncos gave a little hint as what the offensive line-up may look like this fall. Tyler Polumbus, Seth Olsen, J.D. Walton, Chris Kuper and Zane Beadles (from left to right) were on the first team O-line. Spencer Larsen continued to play fullback, with Moreno in the backfield. Receivers Jabar Gaffney and Brandon Lloyd got some good playing time at WR with Demaryius Thomas, Eric Decker, and Brandon Stokley not participating. Thomas and Decker are recovering from injuries, and veteran Stokley has been known to get the occassional day off to address aches and pains. Eddie Royal was also a frequent target of passes during today's 7-on-7 periods.

Veteran Tight End Daniel Graham played TE with the first team, while Marquez Branson continued to get some time at fullback, and as pass-catching tight end.

The defense looked a lot different than it did last season, with newly signed Baraka Atkins joining Robert Ayers, Mario Haggan, and D.J. Williams as the linebackers. Le Kevin Smith, and new-comers Jamal Williams and Jarvis Green made up the defensive line, Justin Bannan was excused from practice for personal reasons. The secodary looked the same as it did last year, with Champ Bailey, Andre' Goodman, Brian Dawkins and Renaldo Hill playing with the first team. Second-year corner Alphonso Smith also played with the first team, in Denver's "nickel" package.

On his 24th Birthday, Tony Carter had a good practice, at one point intercepting Tom Brandstate's only pass, and returning it for a score.

View a video of the Sights and Sounds from Monday's Passing Camp pratice by clicking here.

*Editors Note, a nasty stomach virus I have prevented our coverage of today's practice from being up to par, apologies for that.*